


the time wasn't right (but u were)

by drmroses



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst with a Happy Ending, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Magic, Mutual Pining, Necromancer Park Jisung, Necromancy, Potions, Potions Master Huang Renjun, Soulmates, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-11
Updated: 2021-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-12 13:22:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29011230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/drmroses/pseuds/drmroses
Summary: Renjun knew Jisung would meddle in anything that involved him.He just didn’t think that would include his death.
Relationships: Huang Ren Jun/Park Jisung
Comments: 8
Kudos: 35
Collections: Love Dream 2020





	the time wasn't right (but u were)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [edbloom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/edbloom/gifts).



> before reading, i just want to make sure that everyone knows that there is a lot of mention of death and necromancy and ideas around that. please be safe!
> 
> title from tia ray's [时间不解释](https://youtu.be/1dkX7Xci9g8), which is a beautiful song from a beautiful artist. i totally suggest you check out that song + the album, '1212'.

Renjun couldn’t stand the ache in his head. 

He groaned, feeling as though his bones had all suddenly reanimated themselves. With his eyes closed, he tried to turn to the side and contemplate what had happened. He had died...right? 

He sighed to himself. There was no other explanation. He had remembered the blast; the potions that Jeno had warned him against making had created toxic gas that inflicted a short and sweet pain on him. The last thing that he could remember was lying with his head pressed on a stone counter, wondering when the pain residing in his chest would be all over. 

With that sobering thought in mind, he opened his eyes, facing a warm fabric that looked quite familiar. Renjun tried to make sense of the...sofa that he was laying on. Where was he? 

Just his luck, Renjun thought, with a look around the room. It would be his luck that kept him in neither a glowing bright field of clouds, nor a disastrous downtrodden volcanic eruption.

With another groan, his body screaming at him to stop moving, he turned to his right. Instead of more fabric, a whole room was displayed before his eyes. Renjun stared in wide fascination. 

There was a cloth in the center of the room, balanced over a metal table long enough to hold Christmas dinner for Renjun’s extended family. On the side of the room lay a wooden stick, and a book made for magic. Renjun could feel the magical pull of the book from the other side of the room. It had to be a powerful manuscript. 

He stood up and examined the book. It was for specialized magic; the kind one gained from their family after earning a mastery degree. A small ‘JS’ was scratched into the corner of the book. Renjun opened the book, read the word “necromancy’ and immediately gasped. 

He shook his head in fury. There was no way. The color drained from his face; he flipped back to the cover. His fingers traced the scratched initials at the bottom of the blue cover.

“Jisung.” He thought out loud. “What have you done?”

“Saved you, I so hope.” A voice whispered across the room.

Renjun whipped his head to face Jisung, who was standing at the edge of the stairs. In a fluid motion, he marched over to him. 

While Renjun made his way over, Jisung shook his head; his eyes were twinkling with happiness. “I’m so glad to see that you’re alright. I had to find and read through an old book of grandfather’s to resurrect you, and you know how much I hate those books. But it’s worth it! Of course it is.” Renjun’s eyes widened with every word Jisung sprouted. 

“Resurrect?” He lunged to pull Jisung into a tight hug. “Why the hell would you do that? Hasn’t being in necromancer school taught you any fucking thing?” 

Jisung stepped back defensively. “Of course I know the dangers. Mark lectures me on them every Friday as a warning.” Renjun’s left eyebrow lifted, and then Jisung knew he was in trouble. He groaned. 

“The right thing to do?” Renjun growled in frustration. “How the hell can this be justified? You should have let me die.” The air grew solemn at Renjun’s words. He deflated, but continued on in a lower tone. “Why did you do it?”

Jisung looked to his floor, a telltale sign that the next words out of his mouth would be a lie. “I don’t know.”

Renjun sighed. “That’s such a dumb answer for such a stupid idea. If a Mage had been searching for hints of illegal magic, they would have come in and stripped you of your honor. And not just that. Your magic...it could have failed you." Renjun shook his head in disblief. "I hate to say this, but it should have. You don’t have the power to resurrect anyone by yourself. You don’t work in the infirmary as much as I do, but the amount of people I see for overworking their magic...it’s not something you can come back from.”

Jisung said nothing, his face low in upset.

Renjun glowered for a moment, before let his shoulders fall. “You can’t just go around necromancing people.” 

“Okay.” He sounded hesitant. Renjun refrained from arguing with him more. He was tired.

Renjun shifted awkwardly from side to side. “But now that I’m awake...I think we should talk about what’s happened in the meantime.”

Jisung looked to the stairs. “I bought your favorite food in hopes you would awake soon. Why don’t we go upstairs and talk over lunch?” Renjun sighed, but obeyed. The silence that followed Renjun from the basement to Jisung’s dining room was awkward. Renjun couldn’t recall in his memory where he had felt so awkward standing next to Jisung.

They sat down at Jisung’s table. Renjun looked distantly out the window as Jisung placed utensils and plates in front of him. He dug in. He was so hungry, for the first few minutes, that he forgot what he wanted to ask.

Finally, while wiping his face with a napkin, he asked. “How did you find me? Does anyone else know that I…” _died._ Renjun couldn’t even utter the word.

“I came to check up on you. Something felt wrong; you weren’t answering your phone.” Jisung shook his head. “And I found you, gases vanquished from the air into your body, cold on the stone floor. No sign of force. I dragged you upstairs and performed a test. You were dead, already. So I brought you in one of those enchanted bags you tested out the other month to my apartment.”

Renjun looked at his hands; he tested and flexed them. He almost couldn’t believe he was alive. “I just...still don’t understand.” He admitted. “Why would you do such a thing?”

“The world would have missed such a person.” Jisung said quietly. “I needed to do this.”

“And no one knows?” Renjun glanced at Jisung, whose head was draped onto the table, eyes focused on the food in front of him.

“No one.” With that, Renjun threw his napkin onto the table. Jisung jumped in shock at his motion.

“Where are you going?” He asked as Renjun moved from the table.

“I need some time.” He begged. “I just..need to think for a moment. What day is it today?”

“Thursday. I called into work for you.” Jisung looked apologetic. He sighed. “Are you sure you want to be alone? You just...died.” 

The word stung Renjun. He backed away. 

“I’m sure. I’ll call Jeno if I need anything, don’t worry.” He hesitated, before returning to Jisung’s side, swooping down into a hug.

“I’m still angry at you.” He reminded him. “But thank you for saving me.” His words were muffled in the hug; Jisung nodded in contemplation.

“Be safe!” He yelled after him. Renjun closed the apartment door and took a deep breath. He didn’t know what to do. His mind was racing. He racked his brain for ideas, but there were none. He sighed. He straightened up and took a short walk home. 

Potions always cheered him up. In his anger, he was going to get to work, to try and push every single thought of feeling away. Potions didn’t require feelings.

His cat came to the front door when he returned. With a purr, she rubbed her fur against his leg. Idly, he squatted down to pet her.

“Yes, yes. I missed you too.” He murmured. He gathered her in her arms and led them down the hallway, to a small room, where the hatch was still opened. He shook his head at that, thinking about the teachers that would scold him for missing protocol. 

Then he froze. 

How could he think about protocol when he had just...died? He was still in disbelief. Making his way down the ladder, cat still in his arms, he slumped back on the stone ground. His shock was immense; he was so tired of everything. 

As he closed his eyes and leaned against the counter, a buzzing sound filled his ears. Cautiously, he opened his eyes. It was coming from his left, where the cauldrons and the stove sat. He stood upright. It was also where the potion he had made should still have been sitting, if no one had moved it.

Had the potion stayed there while he died? Had the fumes seeped into his apartment? He scanned the pot abrasively. Quietly, he patted the potion upside down into the sink and took out his cell phone. With a quick tap of the button, he called Jaemin to help him with the mess, and the state of his head.

Two minutes later, Jaemin was in his basement. Though Jaemin ran the apothecary, he also had a special hand in cleaning things in a jiff. Renjun could remember clearly the days spent as roommates at university, Jaemin cleaning up after him for room inspections they barely passed. 

“What were you doing with alderposh?” Jaemin wrinkled his nose in disgust, his hands in gloves, holding up a vine of berries. “That stuff’s super toxic, even in the smallest patches.”

Renjun sorted through his head. “I can’t...remember?” He tried to think back to before his death, but the ideas he had thrown around in his head when he had been resurrected were no longer there.

Jaemin threw a liquid onto the floor that seemed to scorch it of any imposter substances. “You don’t remember? It just occurred, right?” 

“Well..I did die, you know.” Renjun said in a joking manner. Jaemin dropped the empty container he was holding.

“Come by that, again?” Renjun laughed nervously. He had forgotten who he was talking to.

“You promise you won’t tell anyone?” When Jaemin nodded, Renjun sighed. “I died. After making that potion,” He moved his arm to specify the area. “Jisung found me, and well, he revived my body.”

Jaemin turned around, to face the door. “Of course Jisung did.” He didn’t sound surprised. He threw his gloves into a bag by his feet. “The kid would move mountains for you. Who did he get to help him? Mark wouldn’t, right? Maybe Donghyuck and Chenle? They’ve always been more morally gray, or at least Jeno and I think so…”

“He did it by himself.” Renjun scoffed. “Idiot, he really could’ve used up his energy.”

Jaemin’s eyes widened. He turned back towards Renjun. “By himself? And nothing went wrong?” He bit his lip. “Renjun,” He said slowly. “Other than the memory loss, does anything else hurt?”

Renjun tried to move. “Not really. I think I’m okay.”

Jaemin sighed, and grabbed his arm. “You should get a checkup, like right now.” 

As Jaemin pushed him out the door, Renjun protested. “But what do I tell the healer? That someone revived me?”

Jaemin hauled a taxi nearby. “Just say you have memory problems and just want a full checkup to see if anything is wrong.” He pressed a hug to him. “Good luck.”

Jaemin’s worry lingered with Renjun throughout the ride. He hesitantly made his way into the hospital. The inside of the hospital was white, faded lights that swung back and forth. Renjun made his way to the front desk, where he was promptly escorted in after a few moments. The hospital seemed to be having a light day; healers mulled around a coffee table. 

“What seems to be the problem today?” The healer asked, washing her hands with a wave of her palms. Renjun watched in fascination. The magic energy reserve of those that healed always seemed...impossible, compared to his simple potions. 

“I’ve seemed to have lost a bit of my memory.” He winced. She shot him a look.

“Describe the situation to me.” She leaned back in her chair. Behind her, a computer pad was automatically tapping away at her words.

Renjun swallowed. He had never been one for lying. “I’m a potioneer. I was experimenting with potions in my basement when my memory just seemed to disappear.” He frowned. “When I came back, I was upstairs. I remembered I had a potion running downstairs, but all that was left was a mess. I called over my apothecary friend to fix up the floor; his magic is powerful. He asked me what I was making, and that’s when I realized I couldn’t remember.”

She hummed thoughtfully under her breath. “Anything else? Do you feel sore or achy? Nauseous? Does anything feel out of the ordinary to you? Where do you think your memory stops?” 

Renjun shook his head. “Not really…” He trailed off and tried to answer her last question. “But I think my last memory is from...the day before yesterday.”

She frowned. “I’m not sure how we can treat it; the best thing you can do is rest and let the memories come back to you. It would probably be appropriate for a friend to stay with you for a couple of days. Could you call one over so I can let them know about the situation?” 

Renjun racked his head, and nodded. With his cell phone, he sent a text to Jaemin, who immediately responded with affirmation. 

As the healer exited the room in wait, Renjun tried to take a deep breath. He couldn’t panic. Everything was going to be fine. And if he didn’t get his memory back...his eyes blurred. He couldn’t stop thinking about the possibilities. Someone with a delicate memory couldn’t be trusted to brew dangerous potions, could they? What if this had a scarring effect on his career?

“Hey, hey!” A familiar voice knelt in front of his face. “Renjun, calm down.” They took his hands into theirs. With a few moments in silence, Renjun’s vision and heart rate went back to normal. 

His eyes widened. “Jisung? I texted Jaemin, right?” He double checked his phone.

“Jaemin told me to come and get you.” Jisung said. “Come on, we’re going back to your house. I’ve signed the forms. You’re all set.” 

“Give me a second. I need to go to the bathroom.” Renjun said, exiting amid Jisung’s protests.

He sprinted across the hallway, into a bathroom cell. Once inside, he dialed Jaemin’s number. It reached voicemail. Hissing a violent voicemail into his inbox, Renjun took a deep breath and headed back to his room. Jisung was waiting outside it, car keys in hand. 

They silently made their way to the car. Once inside, Renjun’s phone dinged. With a sharp look to make sure Jisung’s eyes weren’t watching him, he checked his phone. Jaemin hadn’t called him back, but left a message stating that _jisungs always cared abt u dont worry!_

Renjun wished he could scream, but instead, he left a strongly worded text back.

Jisung’s car blundered along the streets. Renjun stared out his window, wishing to be anywhere but here. He couldn’t stand the suffocating emotions that lay on Jisung’s face. 

It was strange. Renjun had always been able to pick up on Jisung’s emotions, but today was different. It was as if Jisung had become a different person. 

Once they arrived, Renjun ran ahead of Jisung to his door. Unlocking it, he left the door open as he straightened his apartment of anything carelessly strung around. 

Renjun resisted the urge to scream. The air was filled with tension as he made his way back into the main room. Jisung had washed an apple, cut it into segments onto a plate. He took it from his hands, a silent thank you left along his throat.

As Jisung moved across the kitchen with the force of persistence, Renjun examined him. 

With brown dyed hair and a piercing Renjun had persuaded him to get back when they were in the academy (here, he twisted his own exact earring), Jisung had grown up side by side with Renjun. Though necromancers liked to stay with their own kind, creating families and groups of their own, Renjun had become attached to Jisung from the start. He refused to let go, ploying him into parties and activities most of those dealing with death tended to avoid. Renjun didn’t care. He loved Jisung. 

Jisung glanced back at Renjun; he tried to look occupied with his apple slices.

“What do you want for dinner?” Jisung asked, obviously trying to clear the air. “You don’t have much…” He said, mostly to himself. “But maybe I could make some noodles and soup?” 

Renjun nodded, before realizing Jisung couldn’t see him. “Sure. I’m up for it.”

He cleared his throat. “Hey Jisung?” Jisung nodded with his back to him, filling up the pot with water. “Do you know what I was making before I...you know?”

Jisung shrugged. “Nope.” He narrowed his eyes. “But I do remember a slimy substance painting the inside of the cauldron? I think it was glowing too.” 

Grabbing a sheet of parchment from his desk, Renjun sat down at the counter, writing down what Jisung had told him. “Anything else?” He asked. 

Jisung shrugged. “Nope. If I think of anything else, I’ll let you know.” 

As Jisung made dinner, Renjun tried to think it through. The slimy substance... it had to be sort of potion that had taken too much heat, water evaporating. Unless he had wanted it to be slimy, that is. Maybe it had been for the skin? And as for the glow, Renjun thought with a sigh, that meant the potion was some sort of healing potion. He shook his head internally. So how would a healing potion do this much damage?

“I’m gonna be in the lab.” He slid off his chair. He didn’t wait for a response. The further he went, the colder he got. The potions lab looked the same as it did a few hours ago. He sighed, and tried to examine ingredients he had left out. He took stock. He was missing some alderposh, newton and angel’s dust. 

Frowning, he kept a note of it on his parchment. Next, he moved to the liquids. Nothing seemed to be missing, so he concluded that it had to have a water base. 

The stove was in front of him now. Renjun placed his hands into gloves and felt around the stove for sharp ridges. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Jaemin really did clean well, Renjun thought with irritation and satisfaction. He sighed, brought his main book and three supplementary potions books into the center counter. 

Angel’s dust showed clear good intentions; Renjun couldn’t think of the last time he had needed to use such a potently light ingredient. Alderposh was barely ever spoken about. Renjun only had two batches of it left. The rest of the ingredients he had found missing were basic ingredients; he wouldn’t have any way of figuring out what potion they belonged to. 

With a sigh, he flipped the parchment over. Next, opening the book to the index, he scanned for potions including alderposh. He figured it would be the easiest way to find what had killed him.

Thirty minutes later, Jisung popped his head inside. “Are you ready to eat?” He asked. 

Renjun nodded, closing his fourth book. “Just ready. Give me a second.” Securely storing the parchment away in his desk, he followed Jisung up the stairs.

Dinner was tense. Renjun kept his head focused on the food in front of him. Every time he lifted his head, Jisung would rapidly duck his, as if he had been staring. Renjun scoffed at his childish behavior, but said nothing. If Jisung wasn’t going to start a conversation, neither was he. 

He hated being completely at odds with Jisung. There had never been much that they had disagreed on; both with the same interests and dislikes. And this wasn’t anything either person could talk about either. Jisung had made his choice to revive Renjun. Thirty more seconds followed in the same format before Jisung broke.

“Why are you so angry? I thought I did something good...” Jisung sputtered out. 

“I’m not,” Renjun sighed. “I’m just...embarrassed and angry, maybe. You’re always taking care of me.” His frustration rose. 

“It isn’t right. You’ve always been so great to me. I’ve never offered you anything the way you’ve done for me. And now saving my life? At the expense of yours? How can I ever pay you back?”

Jisung sighed. “You don’t need to pay me back. Or do anything. I wanted to do it.”

Renjun bit his lip. “Even with all the possible downfalls you still chose to do it.”

Jisung had nothing left to say; Renjun turned back to his bowl of noodles in contemplation. When their bowls were both empty, they, in silent agreement, made their way to the kitchen. Renjun washed the dishes. Jisung dried them and put them away.

Jisung made a suggestion. “Why don’t we go watch a movie? I’ll play our favorite, just for you.” 

Renjun knew Jisung was merely trying to soften him up, but it worked. With a sigh, he migrated over to his sofa, leaving Jisung’s favorite pillow—they had bought it together, blue and green ruffles—for him. 

An old and faded CD veered in the background as Jisung settled into his place. The beginning notes of the musical began to play; Renjun focused his attention besides him at Jisung. Jisung didn’t notice; eyes wide open, mouth full of chocolate. 

With examination, came further questioning. Renjun had always desperately wanted to solve all the questions in the universe. But this, all of this, meant more. He would gladly give up his potioneer master degree for the satisfaction of understanding what was occurring in Jisung’s head. It couldn’t have been a simple heroic action. Jisung had done this with the intent and understanding that he could die.

Their sleepover ended abruptly after a few days, when the nurse concluded that Renjun was free to live alone again. His memories, she told him firmly, would never come back. But it was still important to make sure nothing else changed for him. If he even felt a bit worse, she warned him, he would need to come back for an inspection. 

But even without Jisung staying at his house came the invasion of other friends. Between their closest friends, Jisung’s act of bravery and stupidity had been passed around behind closed doors. 

Jaemin and Mark came over on Friday to celebrate with a pink cake, the words ‘u didnt die!’ printed on the front. Jeno made an excuse to drop by for lunch on Saturday, citing potion problems. But no potion examining came throughout the lunch; Jeno merely listened to Renjun with an open ear and an examining look on his face. Chenle and Donghyuck rumbled through the door on Sunday. There was no sign anything was out of the ordinary, other than for the hug that lasted a bit too long for Renjun’s comfort. 

Between their visits, Renjun sorted through all his magical books, most courtesy of the necromancer and potioneer duo that had lived before in the house. He ran through journals and first hand accounts, trying to find a reason behind Jisung’s persistence. Renjun was glad Jisung didn’t die at the fault of him, but he couldn’t understand why. 

With a bitter taste in his mouth, Renjun recognized the fact that Jisung should have died. The effort of reviving a single person, as each magical book suggested, should have taken another experienced person, at the very least.

All, but one account. Renjun’s heart sank with every word that seemed scrawled into the yellowed journal. He shook his head. On one hand, this was the only possibility. After days of research, this was the only idea he could find. 

But on the other hand—his hand gripped the book tightly—it seemed impossible.

He sighed. There was one way to find out. Searching for the diagnostic spell at the end of the text, he placed a paper in front of him, and lowered his hand to the paper. Then, with a prepared simple potion, he muttered delicate words as the liquid sapped magic from his hands into the paper. Exhausted by the lack of magic, he examined the drawing that flew across his paper. 

It was his magic signature. Each person had a different accent to theirs. Renjun’s flew across the page effortlessly, whimsical scribbles brushing the interior, a geometrical base guarding the outside. 

He shook his head, and let the wet paper rest on the counter of his kitchen. Every time he went into his kitchen, his heart leapt up at the sight of it; it seemed to be asking Renjun to dive deeper. 

The next night Jisung came over for dinner, it was a cloudy Monday night; Renjun made a useless joke about the weather before he promptly shut up. It was their first Monday night dinner after Renjun had died, but the atmosphere was better; both of them were eager to make amends. 

Renjun asked him to go through the same procedure with the excuse of experimentation for potions. After Jisung chided him for experimenting after nearly dying, he readily obeyed. Renjun tried to act as if the drawing that drew itself after Jisung lifted his hand didn’t faze him. He left the paper on the counter, and escorted Jisung out the door once their dinner was over. 

But once the door closed, he ran to the counter, grabbed the paper, and ran downstairs. With a single look, he compared the two drawings. 

They were the same. Whimsical whispers of art in the center; romantic delicate loops hidden against a pattern of roses. 

His mind drew from his body; his breaths were unregulated. He felt as if there was a force moving through his body. 

It shouldn’t have been possible. This, he knew well. But judging from the papers held in his hand, and the journal left out, it had happened...at least twice. 

Quickly, he reread the journal entry. Written by a necromancer, it explained what their potioneer “soulmate” had found out on the topic of magic signatures. He peered out the window. Jisung had just left the apartment’s front door. He followed his steps down the street, sighing in exasperation when Jisung was finally out of sight. 

He could’ve blurted out everything when Jisung was still here. He should’ve. But something had stopped him; the fear of rejection blew through his thoughts like a cold shower. He didn’t want Jisung to feel strapped to him, as if he couldn’t go anywhere without him. He wanted to be a person Jisung wanted. 

Renjun wanted to be reliable and brave. 

With a sigh, and his cell phone opened to his contacts, he called Donghyuck. “Come over.” He hollered, before grabbing the bottle of wine he had hidden behind a cereal box in the pantry. 

The first words that left Renjun’s mouth when Donghyuck entered his apartment was, “We’re soulmates.”

Donghyuck stared after him as Renjun made himself comfortable on his couch.

“We’re...soulmates?” He murmured. Then, the words clicked in his head. “You and Jisung…?”

“Fucking soulmates.” Renjun let out a bitter laugh. “No wonder he could bring me back to life. Our magic signatures are the same.” He threw the two pieces of paper that had been waded up in his hands to Donghyuck.

Donghyuck’s eyes widened. “And they’re opposing colors. It’s only been a rumor of sorts, hasn’t? This whole soulmate business?”

Renjun shook his head. “What are you talking about?”

Donghyuck sighed. “The soulmate stuff? There’s always been underground talk about how magic and soulmates are linked. Research even, just not properly funded by the mage department. Some of my nontraditional teachers have mentioned it.”

“So Jisung probably knows?” Renjun’s stomach tossed.

“Jisung might have an inkling of an idea.” Donghyuck admitted. “But I doubt he has linked the two ideas together.” He stopped for a moment, and then smiled. “Jisung probably thinks it was just a miracle.” Renjun’s shoulders sagged in relief.

“So…” Donghyuck asked. “What’s the plan?”

Renjun hesitated. “Do you think I should tell him?”

Donghyuck gawked. “Of course! Jisung would want to know.”

Renjun blushed. “Even if it just means we’re supposed to have a strong bond? Won’t it...weird him out? Put too much pressure on him? I mean…” His voice lowered to a whisper. “The only other record I could find of this happening was between two lovers! And Jisung and I are just friends.”

Donghyuck gave Renjun a calculating look. “Jisung adores you.” He said it with conviction; Renjun felt skeptical, still. “Not to mention, imagine the energy that you could bring each other. We could test out the strength of your bond? Maybe there’s things we should experiment with.” His eyes lit up at the very thought.

Renjun was still skeptical, but the thought of research lured him to step closer to the goal of telling Jisung. He sighed. He knew he was just putting off the confrontation.

“You sure he won’t find it...strange?”

Donghyuck sighed. “The boy who stays up late at night and discusses extraterrestrial creatures with you. Strange? Really?”

Renjun shifted, his thoughts harsh under Donghyuck’s gaze. “I just don’t wanna mess things up.” He muttered. “Things are already super weird between me and Jisung.” 

“What?” Donghyuck asked. “Why?”

Renjun looked at his shoes. “Still the whole dying and saving thing. I’m…”

“Embarrassed? Acting as if you’re angry when you’re really just super embarrassed to be in this situation?” Donghyuck picked up on his mood instantly.

“Jisung doesn’t care.” Donghyuck said once. He repeated it once more, to the dismay of Renjun, shaking his head. He knew that Jisung cared about him; but far enough to not find such a magical signature disturbing? He was worried. 

“In fact,” Donghyuck said, looking down at his phone, “he’ll be here in two minutes to talk to you about it.” He shoved his phone at Renjun. There, in bright letters, was their correspondence.

“I’ve told him there’s something urgent you have to tell him.” Donghyuck said smugly. “Good luck!” He giggled, ducking out from Renjun’s grasp and towards the door.

Renjun blushed. “Why does this feel so juvenile?” He called after Donghyuck. With the shut of a door, indicating Renjun was alone, Renjun mocked himself. “Check yes if you’re totally creeped up by my revelation and don’t ever want to see me again...Check no—”

The door flew open in that instance. Renjun squeaked in surprise. 

“I’m back!” Jisung called. He stopped in his tracks at the entrance. Renjun could see him from his spot on the couch; his cheeks were flushed, he was breathing heavily. 

Instead of letting him flounder, Renjun made his way to the door. Grabbing the two papers, he hid them behind his back. 

“I have to tell you something.” Renjun said. 

Jisung nodded. “I got Donghyuck’s text.”

“Well…” Renjun inhaled. “Our magical signatures are the same.” Here, he gave him the papers. “We’re soulmates.” He waited for Jisung to shrink back in terror.

Jisung stared, for a moment, eyes at the parchment. Then, with a huge leap, he threw his arms around Renjun.

Renjun moved back a few steps in surprise.

“I’m glad.” Jisung’s voice was muffled in Renjun’s jacket. “I’m so glad.”

“You’re not...surprised?” Renjun asked. 

“Of course I am.” Jisung said. “But it makes sense. I mean...I’ve always liked you, you know? And when we were back in the academy I used to always wonder why I was so drawn to your stubborn self. And then when we had to go on to separate universities, I was so sad, just about leaving you. And I don’t know, I really don’t know anything. But I’ve always understood how I felt about you.” Jisung looked at Renjun, straight in the eye. “And I know that I like you.”

Though Renjun had been previously conflicted about his feelings, the words Jisung was sprouting made sense to him; it was how he felt about Jisung. “I like you too.” Renjun admitted, feeling his cheeks burn red as the grin widened on Jisung’s face. 

A knock on the door came at once. Jisung opened it curiously to find Donghyuck and Chenle there, cake in hand. 

“Congrats!” They yelled, throwing confetti in their faces. Renjun took one look at Jisung’s expression and burst out into laughter. Each of them became so infrenzed with laughter that the room seemed to grow smaller and smaller; Jisung began wheezing. 

But finally, when the laughter became subdued, Donghyuck’s face was of inquiry. “You guys are all good, right?”

Renjun nodded affirmatively. “All good.”

“So you’re...dating?” Chenle said with hopefulness. Renjun cast a quick glance at Jisung, who was staring at the floor in embarrassment. 

“I do think so.” Renjun said in a humorous tone. “But that’s a conversation for tomorrow, isn’t it?”

“And the mysterious potion that you tried to make?” Donghyuck added.

Jisung finally looked up. “We’ll figure it out tomorrow. We have all the time in the world.” 

Staring at Jisung, Renjun felt as though anything he said could and would be true. His heart felt, for the first time in forever, at peace.

**Author's Note:**

> hi!! this was prompt 3: "necromancer jisung brings renjun back to life, despite everyone's warnings." 
> 
> for [edbloom](https://archiveofourown.org/users/edbloom/): i really enjoyed working with this prompt; all three of your prompts were super fun to think about! happy valentines day :)
> 
> i hope you enjoyed it :) have a great day !!
> 
> [twitter](https://twitter.com/dreamjuns) || [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/drmroses)


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